ap gov unit 1 review

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UNIT 1 – CONSTITUTIONAL UNDERPINNINGS

What Is Government? A government is composed of the formal and informal institutions, people, and used to create and conduct public policy.Public policy is the exercise doing those things necessary to maintain legitimate authority and control over society.

Forms of GovernmentGreek philosopher Aristotle attempted to classify governments based on the number individuals who participated in making

political decisions: rule by one, rule by the few, or by the many. His early classification system is still useful in describinggovernments today:♦ anarchy: lack of government♦ autocracy: rule by one

absolute monarchy: ruler gains power through inheritance; there are no restrictions on the ruler's power constitutional monarchy: ruler gains power through inheritance; formal restrictions limit power, often restricting the

monarch to ceremonial status dictatorship: ruler seizes power, keeps power by force and restricts opposition to regime; no restrictions on

dictator's power♦ oligarchy: rule by a few

aristocracy: rule by the elite, usually determined by social status or wealth theocracy: rule by religious leaders

♦ democracy: rule by the people

direct democracy: citizens meet and make decisions about public policy issues representative democracy: citizens choose officials (representatives) who make decisions about public

policy

Theories of Democratic GovernmentTheories of democratic government are theories about who has power and influence over public policy and decision makingat the local, state, and national levels of government.♦ traditional democratic theory: Government depends on the consent of the governed, which may be

given directly or through representatives; may include criteria for the measure of "how democratic."♦ pluralist theory: Interest groups compete in the political arena, with each promoting its policy preferences through

organized efforts. Conflict among groups may result, requiring bargaining and compromise.♦ elite theory: A small number of powerful elite (corporate leaders, top military officers, government leaders) form an

upper class, which rules in its own self-interest (C. Wright Mills).♦ bureaucratic theory: The hierarchical structure and standardized procedures of modern governments allow

bureaucrats, who carry out the day-to-day workings of government, to hold the real power over public policy (MaxWeber).

♦ hyperpluralism: Democracy is a system of many groups having so much strength that government is often "pulled" innumerous directions at the same time, causing gridlock and ineffectiveness.

Articles of ConfederationThe Articles of Confederation (1781-1789) became the first national constitution for governing the American states. The

Articles created a confederation or "league of friendship" among the states. The Confederation would be composed of arelatively weak national government with a unicameral legislature. Congress would have limited powers such as borrowingmoney, creating a national army and navy, declaring war, creating post offices, and signing treaties with foreigngovernments. Congress was not given the power to tax, draft soldiers for military service, or regulate commerce. There wasno national executive or judicial branch under the Articles of Confederation. Each state was equal, with one vote, regardlessof population or size. The votes of nine of the 13 states were required for legislation to pass the Confederation Congress;amending the Articles of Confederation required a unanimous vote.

The weaknesses evident in the Articles of Confederation allowed the states to focus on their own powers. With no centralgovernment to control them, the states taxed each other, printed their own money, made treaties with foreign governments,and often refused to uphold the laws of the Confederation government. The government under the Articles of Confederation, however, could not deal with the nation's problems. Economic chaos and violence broke out, resulting inconferences at Mt. Vernon and Annapolis. These meetings proved to be unsuccessful, and eventually a rebellion of farmersin Massachusetts (Shays Rebellion) led to the calling of a Constitutional Convention.

Constitutional ConventionThe Constitutional Convention was convened in Philadelphia in May of 1787, for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.



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Compromises♦ Debate over the various plans presented at the Constitutional Convention resulted in the Connecticut (Great)

Compromise. This compromise settled the disputes between the states over the structure of the legislative branch.Congress would be a bicameral legislature, with representation in the lower house based on the population of the stateand equal representation of the states in the upper house.

♦ A second compromise concerned the counting of slaves for the purpose of determining population for representation inCongress and for taxation. Southern states wanted slaves to be counted for representation but not taxation. Northernstates wanted slaves counted for taxation but not for representation. The Three-Fifths Compromise resolved thisissue: each state would count three-fifths of its slave population for purposes of determining both representation andtaxation.

♦ The Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise resolved other differences between southern and northern states.

Congress was prohibited from taxing exports from the states and from banning the slave trade for a period of 20 years.♦ Numerous other compromises were made at the Constitutional Convention concerning the executive and judicial

branches as well as the electoral process for choosing a chief executive.

Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan

Bicameral legislature♦ lower house elected by the people♦ upper house chosen by lower house from nominees

submitted by state legislatures

Unicameral legislature♦ representatives chosen by state legislatures♦ each state receives one vote

Representation in each house based on population and/ormonetary contributions to the national government by thestate

Representation in house would be equal among the states

Single executive chosen by legislative branch, limited toone term only, could veto legislative acts, removal byCongress

Plural executive chosen by legislative branch, no vetopowers, removal by the states

Judges chosen by legislative branch Judges appointed for life by the executive

Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation♦ Articles created a "league of friendship" between the states

♦ Congress could not tax; it could only request contributionsfrom the states

♦ Congress could not regulate interstate trade or foreigncommerce.

♦ No separate executive to enforce the acts of Congress

♦ No national judiciary to handle state disputes

♦ States and the national government had the authority to coinmoney

♦ Each state had one vote, regardless of size or population

♦ Nine of 13 states required to pass legislation

♦ Unanimous consent required to amend the Articles of Confederation

How the Constitution Remedied Weaknesses♦ Constitution created a federal system of government between

the national and state levels

♦ National government was given the power to tax

♦ Congress was given the power to regulate commercebetween the states and with foreign nations

♦ Article II created a separate executive department whose jobis to enforce the laws of Congress

♦ Article III created a national judiciary with a Supreme Courtand lower courts as established by Congress

♦ Only the national government has the authority to coinmoney

♦ States are represented based on population in the House of Representatives and equality in the Senate

♦ Bills need a simple majority in both houses of Congress

♦ Two-thirds of Congress and three-fourths of the states arenecessary to amend the Constitution



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Ratification of the Constitution Although the delegates at the convention signed the Constitution on September 17, 1787, it still had to be ratified by nine of the 13 states before it could go into effect. In each state, special ratifying conventions would be held over the next twoyears. Debate over ratification divided citizens into Federalist and Anti-Federalist positions.♦ The Federalists stressed the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and the government it created. They

supported a stronger central government with expanded legislative powers.

♦ The Anti-Federalists believed that the new Constitution gave too much power to the national government at theexpense of the state governments. Another objection was the lack of a Bill of Rights, ensuring fundamental liberties.

Basic Principles within the ConstitutionEmbodied within the Constitution are the basic principles of:♦ limited government - belief that government is not all-powerful; government has only those powers given to it♦ popular sovereignty - the people are the source of government's authority♦ separation of powers - power is separated among three branches of government; each has its own powers and

duties and is independent of and equal to the other branches♦ checks and balances - each branch is subject to restraints by the other two branches♦ federalism - a division of governmental powers between the national government and the states

Legislative Branch (Passes Laws)

Over Executive:♦ May override president's veto by two-thirds vote of

both houses♦ May impeach and remove president from office♦ Senate may refuse to confirm presidential

appointments or ratify treaties♦ Creates executive agencies and programs♦ Appropriates funds

Over Judiciary:♦ Creates lower federal courts♦ Sets salaries of federal judges♦ May refuse to confirm judicial appointments♦ May propose constitutional amendments which

overrule court decisions♦ May impeach and remove federal judges

Executive Branch (Enforces Laws)

Over Legislature:♦ President may veto acts of Congress♦ President may call special sessions of Congress♦ President may recommend legislation

Over Judiciary:♦ President appoints federal judges♦ President may grant reprieves and pardons to federal

offenders

♦ May refuse to enforce court decisions

Judicial Branch (Interprets Laws)

Over Legislature:♦ May rule legislative acts unconstitutional♦ Chief justice presides over impeachment of president

Over Executive:♦ May rule executive actions unconstitutional

Federalists

♦ Favored Constitution

♦ Led by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay

♦ Stressed weaknesses of Articles; strong governmentneeded to protect nation and solve domestic problems

♦ Checks and balances would protect against abuses

♦ Protection of property rights

♦ Constitution is a bill of rights with limitations and

reserved powers for the states; state constitutionsalready had protections in bills of rights

Anti-Federalists

♦ Opposed Constitution

♦ Led by Henry, Mason, Samuel Adams

♦ Wanted strong state governments; feared a strongnational government

♦ Created a strong executive similar to monarchy

♦ Wanted fewer limits on popular participation

♦ Wanted a bill of rights to protect citizens against

government



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Formal Amendment ProcessOne major weakness of the Articles of Confederation was the amendment process, which required unanimous approval foramendments to become effective. The framers of the Constitution anticipated the need to change the Constitution andprovided a process to amend the Constitution (Article V) that required both state and national action. Amending the

Constitution requires proposal, a national function, and ratification, a state function. Amendments may be proposed

in Congress by two methods and ratified by two methods, creating four possible methods for formally amending the

Constitution.

♦ proposed by two-thirds vote of each house of Congress and ratified by three-quarters of the state legislatures

(used 26 times)

♦ proposed by two-thirds vote of each house of Congress and ratified by special conventions in at least three-quarters of the states (used once, to ratify the Twenty-first Amendment)

♦ proposed by a national convention called by Congress at the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures and

ratified by three-quarters of the state legislatures (never used)

♦ proposed by a national convention called by Congress at the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures and

ratified by special conventions in at least three-quarters of the states (never used)

Formal Amendments

Formal amendments are written changes to the Constitution. They add to, change the wording of, or delete language

from the Constitution. Only 27 formal amendments have been added to the Constitution since its adoption. The first

ten amendments, the Bill of Rights, were added in 1791.

Informal Amendment Process Although the United States Constitution has been formally changed only 27 times, there have been many changes in

the way in which the American government operates. Most of those changes have come about through the informalamendment process and do not involve actually changing the wording of the Constitution. Informal changes in the

Constitution may occur in the following ways:

♦ legislative actions: Congress has passed various acts that have altered or made clear the meaning of theConstitution. For example, under Article III Congress is given the authority to create lower courts, which they didthrough the Judiciary Act of 1789.

♦ executive actions: The manner in which presidents use their powers can create informal amendments and expandpresidential authority. The use of executive agreements rather than treaties allows the president to bypass the Senate.

♦ judicial interpretation/judicial review: The people who serve as judges and the times in which they serve affecthow courts interpret laws. The concept of judicial review resulted from Marbury v. Madison (1803); it is not mentionedin the Constitution.

♦ custom and usage: Traditions that have been incorporated into the political system and which have lasted over timehave changed the meaning of the Constitution. Senatorial courtesy in the Senate and the "no-third-term" tradition in thePresidency (until the Twenty-second Amendment made it part of the Constitution) are examples.

The Constitutional Basis of Federalism Although the term federalism is not found in the United States Constitution, it is clearly defined in the delegated, concurrent,and reserved power of the national and state governments.♦ delegated powers: expressed, or enumerated powers, those specifically given to the national gov’t (Articles I-V)♦ implied powers: although not expressed, powers that may be reasonably inferred from the Constitution (Article I,

Section 8, Clause 18 - the Necessary and Proper or Elastic Clause)♦ inherent powers: powers that exist for the national government because the government is sovereign♦ concurrent powers: powers that belong to both the national and state governments♦ reserved powers: powers belonging specifically to the state because they were neither delegated to the national

government nor denied to the states (Article IV; Amendment 10)

National Powers

(Expressed, Implied,Inherent)

♦ Regulate interstate commerce♦ Coin and print money♦ Declare war♦ Establish federal courts below the

Supreme Court♦ Conduct foreign relations♦ Make all laws “necessary and

proper” ♦ Acquire and govern U.S. territories

and admit new states♦ Regulate immigration and

naturalization

National and State Powers

(Concurrent)♦ Levy taxes♦ Borrow money♦ Spend for general welfare♦ Establish courts♦ Enact and enforce laws♦ Charter banks

State Powers

(Reserved)♦ Regulate intrastate commerce♦ Establish local governments♦ Establish public school systems♦ Administer elections♦ Protect the public's health,

welfare and morals♦ Regulate corporations♦ Establish licensing requirements

for certain regulated professions



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Prohibited powers - powers that are denied to the national government, state governments, or both (Article I, Sections 9and 10; Amendments); For example, neither the national government nor state governments may pass an ex post facto lawor a bill of attainder.

Interstate Relations Article IV of the Constitution addresses the issue of relationships between the states. It offers several provisions:♦ full faith and credit clause: States are required to recognize the laws and legal documents of other states, such as

birth certificates, marriage licenses, drivers' licenses, wills.♦ privileges and immunities clause: States are prohibited from unreasonably discriminating against residents of other

states. Nonresidents may travel through other states; buy, sell, and hold property; and enter into contracts (does notextend to political rights such as the right to vote or run for political office, or to the right to practice certain regulatedprofessions such as teaching).

♦ extradition: States may return fugitives to a state from which they have fled to avoid criminal prosecution at therequest of the governor of the state.

♦ interstate compacts: States may make agreements, sometimes requiring congressional approval, to work together tosolve regional problems. Some examples are "hot-pursuit agreements," parole and probation agreements, the Port

Authority of New York and New Jersey, and regulating the common use of shared natural resources.

Guarantees to the States Article IV of the Constitution provides national guarantees to the states:♦ republican form of government♦ protections against foreign invasion♦ protections against domestic violence

♦ respect for the geographic integrity of states

Establishing National Supremacy Article VI of the United States Constitution contains the Supremacy Clause, which helps to resolve confl icts betweennational and state laws. Because two levels of government are operating within the same territory and over the samepeople, conflicts are bound to arise. The Supremacy Clause states that the Constitution, its laws and treaties shall be the"supreme law of the land." The Supreme Court upheld this supremacy in McCulloch v. Maryland (1819). The Supreme Courtcontinued to expand the powers of Congress over interstate commerce in Gibbons v. Ogden (1824).

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) The Supreme Court dealt with the issues of the necessary and proper clause and the supremacy clause when Marylandimposed a tax on the Baltimore branch of the Second National Bank of the United States. Chief cashier James McCullochrefused to pay the tax, Maryland state courts ruled in the state's favor, and the United States government appealed to the

Supreme Court. The Marshall court ruled that although no provision of the Constitution grants the national government theexpressed power to create a national bank, the authority to do so can be implied by the necessary and proper clause (ArticleI, Section 8, Clause 18). This ruling established the implied powers of the national government and national supremacy, thebasis used to strengthen the power of the national government.

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) At issue was the definition of commerce and whether the national government had exclusive power to regulate interstatecommerce. The New York legislature gave Robert Livingston and Robert Fulton exclusive rights to operate steamboats inNew York waters and Aaron Ogden the right to operate a ferry between New York and New Jersey. Thomas Gibbons hadreceived a national government license to operate boats in interstate waters. Ogden sued Gibbons and won in the New York courts; Gibbons appealed to the Supreme Court. The Marshall court defined commerce as including all business dealings,

Advantages of Federalism

♦ Ideally suited to large geographic area because itencourages diversity in local government

♦ Avoids concentration of political power

♦ Accommodated already existing state governments

♦ States serve as training grounds for national leaders

♦ Keeps government close to the people

Disadvantages of Federalism

♦ Inflexibility inherent in a written constitution

♦ Complex, with many governments to deal with

♦ Duplication of offices and functions

♦ Conflicts of authority may arise



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and the power to regulate interstate commerce belongs exclusively to the national government. Today, the nationalgovernment uses the commerce clause to justify the regulation of numerous areas of economic activity.

Federalism TodaySince the founding of the United States, society has changed, and federalism has evolved to meet the changes andchallenges.

Dual FederalismThe earliest (1789-1932) interpretation of federalism is the concept of dual federalism, which views the national and state

governments each remaining supreme within their own sphere of influence. This form of federalism is often referred to as"layer cake federalism," because each level of government is seen as separate from the other, with the national governmenthaving authority over national matters and state governments having authority over state matters. The early beliefs thatstates had the sole responsibility for educating their citizens and the national government had the sole responsibility forforeign policy issues are examples of dual federalism.

Cooperative FederalismIn the 1930s the interpretation of federalism shifted to that of the national and state governments sharing policymaking andcooperating in solving problems. Cooperative federalism or "marble cake federalism" as it came to be known, grew from thepolicies of the New Deal era and the need for the national government to increase government spending and publicassistance programs during the Great Depression. The cooperation of the national and state governments to build thenational interstate highway system is an example of cooperative federalism. The expansion of cooperative federalism during(President Lyndon B. Johnson's) Great Society required even greater cooperation from the states in return for federal grants.

New FederalismDuring the administrations of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush the national government attempted toimplement a reversal of cooperative federalism and place more responsibility on the states about how grant money would bespent. The term devolution-a transfer of power to political subunits-has been used to describe the goals of new federalism.

An example of new federalism is welfare reform legislation, which has returned more authority over welfare programs to thestates.

Fiscal FederalismThe national government's patterns of spending, taxation, and providing grants to influence state and local governments isknown today as fiscal federalism. The national government uses fiscal policy to influence the states through granting orwithholding money to pay for programs.♦ grants-in-aid programs - money and resources provided by the federal government to the state and local

governments to be used for specific projects or programs. The earliest grants often covered public works projects suchas building canals, roads, and railroads, and land grants for state colleges.

♦ categorical grants - grants that have a specific purpose defined by law, such as sewage treatment facilities or schoollunch programs; may even require "matching funds" from the state or local governments; categorical grants may be inthe form of project grants (awarded on the basis of a competitive application, such as university research grants) orformula grants (awarded on the basis of an established formula, such as Medicaid).

♦ block grants - general grants that can be used for a variety of purposes within a broad category, such as education,health care, or public services; fewer strings attached so state and local governments have greater freedom in how themoney is spent; preferred by states over categorical grants.

♦ revenue sharing - proposed under the Johnson administration and popular under the Nixon administration, a "nostrings attached" form of aid to state and local governments; could be used for virtually any project but never exceededmore than two percent of revenues; eliminated during the Reagan administration.

♦ mandates - requirements that are imposed by the national government on the state and local governments; forexample, the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) mandates that all public buildings be accessible to persons withdisabilities. Mandates often require state or local governments to meet the requirement at their own expense (unfundedmandates). After the mid-term elections of 1994, the Republican-controlled Congress passed the Unfunded Mandate

Reform Act, which imposed limitations on Congress's ability to pass unfunded mandate legislation.

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